No CrossRef data available.
Article contents
Disaster Risk Governance for Pacific Island Communities
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 March 2025
Summary
This article examines disaster risk governance for island case studies, focusing on Pacific Small Island Developing States (SIDS). SIDS examples are used to examine two main areas in line with this special issue's themes: power and knowledge in disaster risk governance. The interactions between those themes are explored for three SIDS governance scales: regional, national, and sub-national. Linking the theoretical discussion with empirical examples demonstrates how bypassing government can be suitable for disaster risk governance.
- Type
- Research Article
- Information
- Copyright
- Copyright © The Authors 2015
Footnotes
Editor's Note: This is the first article in a three-part special issue on “Pacific Islands, Extreme Environments” edited by Andrea E. Murray. Kelman explores case studies from particularly vulnerable Small Island Developing States (SIDS), including Samoa, Tonga, and the Solomon Islands, to articulate a new theory of disaster risk governance that accounts for the disproportionate climate change-related consequences suffered by these low-lying island countries.
References
Notes
1 Baldacchino, G. (2006) “Innovative Development Strategies from Non-Sovereign Island Jurisdictions? A Global Review of Economic Policy and Governance Practices”. World Development, 34(5), 852-867.
2 UNISDR (2009) UNISDR Terminology on Disaster Risk Reduction. UNISDR (United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction), Geneva, p. 9.
3 UNISDR (2009), pp. 10-11.
4 Peters, B.G. and J. Pierre (1998) “Governance Without Government? Rethinking Public Administration”. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 8(2), 223-243; Rosenau, J.N. and E.-O. Czempiel (1992) Governance Without Government: Order and Change in World Politics. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
5 UN (1994) Report of the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States. Document A/CONF.167/9 (October, 1994) from the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, UN (United Nations), Bridgetown; UN (2005) Draft Mauritius Strategy for the further Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States. Document A/CONF.207/CRP.7 (13 January 2005) from the International Meeting to Review the Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, UN (United Nations), Port Louis; UN (2014) Draft outcome document of the third International Conference on Small Island Developing States. Apia, 1-4 September 2014, Item 10 of the provisional agenda, Outcome of the Conference. United Nations, Apia.
6 Fritz, H.M. and N. Kalligeris (2008) “Ancestral heritage saves tribes during 1 April 2007 Solomon Islands tsunami”. Geophysical Research Letters, 35, paper L01607.
7 Kaly, U., C. Pratt, and R. Howorth (2002) “A framework for managing environmental vulnerability in Small Island Developing States”. Development Bulletin, 58, 33-38; Lewis, J. (1999) Development in Disaster-prone Places: Studies of Vulnerability. Intermediate Technology Publications, London; Lewis, J. (2009) “An Island Characteristic: Derivative Vulnerabilities to Indigenous and Exogenous Hazards”. Shima, 3(1), 3-15.
8 Baldacchino, G. (2005) “Successful Small Scale Manufacturing from Small Islands: Comparing Firms benefiting from Local Raw Material Input”. Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 18(1), 21-38; Scheyvensa, R. and J. Momsen (2008) “Tourism in Small Island States: From Vulnerability to Strengths”. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 16(5), 491-510.
9 Gaillard, JC (2007) “Resilience of traditional societies in facing natural hazards”. Disaster Prevention and Management, 16(4), 522-544; Méheux, K., D. Dominey-Howes, and K. Lloyd (2007) “Natural hazard impacts in small island developing states: a review of current knowledge and future research needs”. Natural Hazards, 40, 429-446.
10 Deloughrey, E., J. Didur, and A. Carrigan (eds.) (2015) Global Ecologies and the Environmental Humanities: Postcolonial Approaches. Routledge, Abingdon; Gaillard (2007); Gaillard, JC (2010) “Vulnerability, Capacity and Resilience: Perspectives for Climate and Development Policy”. Journal of International Development, 22(2), 218-232.
11 Bertram, G. and R.F. Watters (1985) “The MIRAB Economy in South Pacific Microstates”. Pacific Viewpoint, 26(3), 497-519.
12 Le De, L., JC Gaillard, W. Friesen, and F. Matautia Smith (2015) “Remittances in the face of disasters: a case study of rural Samoa”. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 17(3), 653-672.
13 See here.
14 Belshaw, C. (1951) “Social Consequences of the Mount Lamington Eruption”. Oceania, 21(4), 241-253; Firth, R. (1959) Social Change in Tikopia. MacMillan, New York; Keesing, F.M. (1952) “The Papuan Orokaiva vs. Mt Lamington: Cultural Shock and its Aftermath”. Human Organization, 11(1), 26-22; Schneider, D.M. (1957) “Typhoons on Yap”. Human Organisation, 16(2), 10-15; Spillius, J. (1957) “Natural Disaster and Political Crisis in a Polynesian Society: An Exploration of Operational Research”. Human Relations, 10(1), 3-27.
15 Gaillard (2010); Hewitt, K. (ed.) (1983) Interpretations of Calamity from the Viewpoint of Human Ecology. Allen & Unwin, London; Lewis (1999); Wisner, B., P. Blaikie, T. Cannon, and I. Davis. 2004. At Risk: Natural Hazards, People's Vulnerability and Disasters, 2nd edition, Routledge, London; Wisner, B., JC Gaillard, and I. Kelman (eds.) (2012) Handbook of Hazards and Disaster Risk Reduction, Routledge, Abingdon.
16 Campbell, J.R. (1984) Dealing with Disaster: Hurricane Response in Fiji. East-West Center, Honolulu; Lewis (1999).
17 Lewis, J. (1979) “Volcano in Tonga”. Journal of Administration Overseas, XVIII(2), 116-121.
18 Waddell, E. (1983) “Coping with frosts, governments and disaster experts: some reflections based on a New Guinea experience and a perusal of the relevant literature”. In K. Hewitt (ed.), Interpretations of Calamity from the Viewpoint of Human Ecology, Allen & Unwin, London, 33-43.
19 Campbell, John R. Dealing With Disaster: Hurricane Response in Fiji. Pacific Islands Development Program, East-West Center, Honolulu (1984).
20 Hewitt (1983); Wisner, B. (1993) “Disaster Vulnerability: Scale, Power and Daily Life”. GeoJournal, 30(2), 127-140; Wisner et al. (2004, 2012).
21 Butler, R.A. and W.F. Laurance (2008) “New strategies for conserving tropical forests”. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 23(9), 469-472.
22 Hay, J.E. and G. Sem. 1999. Evaluation and Regional Synthesis of National Greenhouse Gas Inventories Volume 1: General Assessment and Regional Synthesis. South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, Apia; IEA. (2009) CO2 emissions from fuel combustion. IEA (International Energy Agency), Paris; Roper, T. (2004) “The global sustainable energy island initiative”. New Academy Review, 3(1), 147-150.
23 Shearman, P.L., J. Ash, B. Mackey, J.E. Bryan, and B. Lokes (2009) “Forest conversion and degradation in Papua New Guinea 1972–2002”. Biotropica, 41(3), 379-390.
24 Schuster, T.C.P.S. (2014) “The Political Economy of Transitioning to a Green Economy in Samoa”. In N. Smith, A. Halton, and J. Strachan (eds.), Transitioning to a Green Economy: Political Economy of Approaches in Small States, Commonwealth Secretariat, London, 178-194.
25 Scambary, J. (2008) “In Search of White Elephants: The Political Economy of Resource Income Expenditure in East Timor”. Critical Asian Studies, 47(2), 283-308.
26 UN (1994, 2005, 2014)
27 Gerrard, M.B. and G.E. Wannier (eds.) (2013) Threatened Island Nations: Legal Implications of Rising Seas and a Changing Climate, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge; Hartmann, B. (2010) “Rethinking Climate Refugees And Climate Conflict: Rhetoric, Reality And The Politics Of Policy Discourse”. Journal of International Development, 22(2), 233-246; Kench, P.S., Thompson, D., Ford, M.R., Ogawa, H., and McLean, R.F. 2015. Coral islands defy sea-level rise over the past century: Records from a central Pacific atoll. Geology, forthcoming; McNamara, K.E. and C. Gibson (2009) “‘We do not want to leave our land’: Pacific ambassadors at the United Nations resist the category of ‘climate refugees‘”. Geoforum, 40, 475-483; Yamamoto, L., and M. Esteban (2014) Atoll Island States and International Law: Climate Change Displacement and Sovereignty, Springer, Berlin.
28 Machiavelli, N. c. 1532. De Principatibus. Antonio Blado d'Asola, Florence; Russell, B. (1938). Power: A new social analysis. Allen & Unwin, London.
29 Emerson, R.M. (1962) “Power-Dependence Relations”. American Sociological Review, 27(1), 31-41.
30 Wrong, D.H. 1968. “Some Problems in Defining Social Power”. American Journal of Sociology, 73(6), 673-681.
31 Burns, T.R. and T. Dietz (2001) “Revolution: An Evolutionary Perspective”. International Sociology, 16(4), 531-555.
32 Betzold, C. (2015) “Biofuel from Coconuts in the Solomon Islands”. In G. Baldacchino (ed.), Entrepreneurship in Small Island States and Territories, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 164-179.
33 Daly M., N. Poutasi, F. Nelson, and J. Kohlhase. (2010) “Reducing the Climate Vulnerability of Coastal Communities in Samoa”. Journal of International Development, 22(2), 265-282.
34 Cronin, S.J., D.R. Gaylord, D. Charley, B.V. Alloway, S. Wallez, and J.W. Esau (2004) “Participatory methods of incorporating scientific with traditional knowledge for volcanic hazard management on Ambae Island, Vanuatu”. Bulletin of Volcanology, 66(7), 652-668.
35 Burns, T.R. and W. Buckley (eds.) (1976) Power and control: social structures and their transformation. Sage, London; Innerarity, D. (2013) The Democracy of Knowledge. Bloomsbury Academic, London.
36 Boyle, C. (1992) “Disaster Resistant Construction for Small Dwellings in Solomon Islands”. In Y. Aysan and I. Davis (eds.), Disasters and the Small Dwelling: Perspectives for the UN IDNDR, James & James, London, 183-186.
37 Reardon, G. (1992) “Wind Effects on the Tongan ‘Hurricane House‘”. On Y. Aysan and I. Davis (eds.), Disasters and the Small Dwelling: Perspectives for the UN IDNDR, James & James, London, 175-182.
38 Dickinson, W.R. (2009) “Pacific atoll living: how long already and until when?” GSA Today, 19, 4-10.
39 Nunn, P.D. (2000) “Environmental Catastrophe in the Pacific Islands Around A.D. 1300”. Geoarchaeology, 15, 715-740; Nunn, P.D. and J.M.R. Britton (2001) “Human-Environment Relationships in the Pacific Islands around AD 1300”. Environment and History, 7, 3-22; Nunn, P.D., R. Hunter-Anderson, M.T. Carson, F. Thomas, S. Ulm, and M.J. Rowland (2007) “Times of Plenty, Times of Less: Last-Millennium Societal Disruption in the Pacific Basin”. Human Ecology, 35, 385-401.
40 Ibid.
41 GVP (2015) “Tafahi”. Global Volcanism Program, last accessed 24 July 2015.
42 Wendt, J.I., M. Regelous, K.D. Collerson, A. Ewart. (1997) “Evidence for a contribution from two mantle plumes to island-arc lavas from northern Tonga”. Geology, 25, 611-614.
43 Taylor, P.W. (1995) “Myths, legends and volcanic activity: An example from northern Tonga”. The Journal of the Polynesian Society, 104(3), 323-346.
44 GVP (2015)
45 Clark, K., W. Power, Y. Nishimura, R.‘A. Kautoke, R. Vaiomo'unga, ‘A. Pongi, M. Fifita. 2011. “Characteristics of the 29th September 2009 South Pacific tsunami as observed at Niuatoputapu Island, Tonga”. Earth-Science Reviews, 107(1-2), 52-65.
46 Newhall, C.G. and R.P. Hoblitt (2002) “Constructing event trees for volcanic crises”. Bulletin of Volcanology, 64, 3-20.
47 cf. Gregory Smits, “Volcanic Hazards as Components of Complex Systems: The Case of Japan”, The Asia-Pacific Journal. Vol. 13, Issue 32, No. 6, August 17, 2015.
48 Gregory Smits,“Danger in the Lowground: Historical Context for the March 11, 2011 Tōhoku Earthquake and Tsunami”. The Asia-Pacific Journal Vol 9, Issue 20 No 4, May 16, 2011.
49 Cronin et al. (2004); Gaillard, JC (2008) “Alternative paradigms of volcanic risk perception: The case of Mt Pinatubo in the Philippines”. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 172(3-4), 315-328; Haynes, K., J. Barclay, and N. Pidgeon (2008a). “The issue of trust and its influence on risk communication during a volcanic crisis”. Bulletin of Volcanology, 70(5), 605-621; Haynes, K., J. Barclay, and N. Pidgeon (2008b) “Whose reality counts? Factors affecting the perception of volcanic risk”. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 172(3-4), 259-272.
50 Baxter, P.J., C. Bonadonna, R. Dupree, V.L. Hards, S.C. Kohn, M.D. Murphy, A. Nichols, R. A. Nicholson, G. Norton, A. Searl, R.S.J. Sparks, and B.P. Vickers (1999) “Cristobalite in Volcanic Ash of the Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat, British West Indies”. Science, 283, 1142-1145.
51 Gaillard, JC (2002) “Territorial Conflicts Following Volcanic Disasters: The 1991 Mt Pinatubo (Philippines) Eruption and the Aetas”. Philippine Geographical Journal, 46(1-4), 3-17.
52 Clark et al. (2011); Taylor) 1995)
53 Mercer, J., I. Kelman, S. Suchet-Pearson, and K. Lloyd (2009) “Integrating indigenous and scientific knowledge bases for disaster risk reduction in Papua New Guinea”. Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography, 91(2), 157-183.
54 Kelman, I., J. Mercer, and J. West (2009) “Combining different knowledges: community-based climate change adaptation in small island developing states”. Participatory Learning and Action Notes, 60, 41-53.
55 March, B. (Director) (2010) There Once was an Island: Te Henua e Nnoho. On The Level Productions, New Zealand, 1 hour 20 minutes
56 Gerrard and Wannier (2013); Knutson, T. R., J. L. McBride, J. Chan, K. Emanuel, G. Holland, C. Landsea, I. Held, J. P. Kossin, A. K. Srivastava, and M. Sugi. (2010) “Tropical cyclones and climate change”. Nature Geoscience, 3, 157-163; Yamamoto and Esteban (2014).
57 Kelman, I., M. Davies, T. Mitchell, I. Orr, and B. Conrich (2006) “Island Disaster Para-Diplomacy in the Commonwealth”. The Round Table: The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 95(386), 561-574.
58 Baldacchino, G. (2004) “Autonomous but not sovereign? A review of island sub-nationalism, Canadian”. Review of Studies in Nationalism, XXXI(1-2), 77-91; Baldacchino (2006); McElroy, J.L. and M. Mahoney (2000) “The propensity for political dependence in small island microstates”. Insula: International Journal of Island Affairs, 9(1), 32-35.
59 Tuiloma-Palesoo, D. (2004) “Handout mentality”. Small Islands Voice Global Forum, 16 November
60 Treadway, J. (2007) Dancing, Dying, Crawling, Crying: Stories of Continuity and Change in the Polynesian Community of Tikopia. IPS Publications, University of the South Pacific, Suva; Yates, L. and L. Anderson-Berry (2004) “The Societal and Environmental Impacts of Cyclone Zoë and the Effectiveness of the Tropical Cyclone Warning Systems in Tikopia and Anuta Solomon Islands, December 26–29, 2002”. The Australian Journal of Emergency Management, 19(1), 16-20.
61 Kelman et al., 2009; Mercer et al., 2009; Mercer, J., I. Kelman, L. Taranis, and S. Suchet-Pearson (2010) “Framework for Integrating Indigenous and Scientific Knowledge for Disaster Risk Reduction”. Disasters, 34(1), 214-239.
62 Mercer, J., I. Kelman, F. do Rosario, A. de Deus de Jesus Lima, A. da Silva, A.M. Beloff, and A. McClean (2014) “Nation-building policies in Timor-Leste: Disaster Risk Reduction Including Climate Change Adaptation”. Disasters, 38(4), 690-718.
63 Such as in Kelman et al. (2009) and Mercer et al. (2010)
64 Peters and Pierre (1998); Rosenau and Czempiel (1992)
65 Connell, J. (2006) “Nauru: The first failed Pacific State?” The Round Table, 95(383), 47-63; Gowdy, J.M. and C.N. McDaniel (1999) “The Physical Destruction of Nauru: An Example of Weak Sustainability”. Land Economics, 75(2), 333-338.
66 Durutalo, A.L., G. Nanau, D.U. Amosa, and A.M. Latu (2014) “Sowing representative democracy in the Kingdom of Tonga: The 2010 Elections and Future Implications for Political Education”. Micronesian Educator, 19, 516-524; Metuamatea, A. (2013) “Tonga's Way to Democracy”. The Journal of Pacific History, 48(3), 346-347.
67 Pogge, T.W. (1997) “Creating Supra-National Institutions Democratically: Reflections on the European Union's ‘Democratic Deficit’”. Journal of Political Philosophy, 5(2), 163-182; Söderbaum, F. 2010. “‘With a Little Help From My Friends’: How Regional Organizations in Africa Sustain Clientelism, Corruption and Discrimination”. Paper presented at Statsvetenskapliga förbundets årsmöte, 30 September to 2 October 2010, Göteborg, Sweden.
68 Feinberg, R. 1988. “Socio-Spatial Symbolism and the Logic of Rank on Two Polynesian Outliers”. Ethnology, 27(3), 291-310.
69 Kooiman, J., M. Bavinck, R. Chuenpagdee, R. Mahon, and R. Pullin (2008) “Interactive Governance and Governability: An Introduction”. The Journal of Transdisciplinary Environmental Studies, 7(1), 1-11.
70 Cronin et al. (2004)
71 Scherer, D. (ed.) (1993) Upstream/Downstream: Issues in Environmental Ethics. Temple University Press, Philadelphia.
72 Hey, R.D. (1990) “Environmental River Engineering”. Water and Environment Journal, 4(4), 335-340.
73 Daly et al. (2010)
74 Enarson, E. and P.G.D. Chakrabarti (eds.) (2009) Women, Gender and Disaster: Global Issues and Initiatives. Sage, London; Krüger, F., G. Bankoff, T. Cannon, B. Orlowski, and E.L. Schipper (eds.) (2015) Cultures and Disasters: Understanding Cultural Framings in Disaster Risk Reduction. Routledge, Abingdon; McSherry, A., E.J. Manalastas, JC Gaillard, and S.N.M. Dalisay. (2015) “From Deviant to Bakla, Strong to Stronger: Mainstreaming Sexual and Gender Minorities into Disaster Risk Reduction in the Philippines”. Forum for Development Studies, 42(1), 27-40; Stough, L.M. and D. Kang (2015) “The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and Persons with Disabilities”. International Journal of Disaster Risk Science, 6(2), 140-149.